Art for the Ages, at the Springfield and Central Illinois African American History Museum (SCIAAHM) through March, includes drawings, three-dimensional figures and paintings created by District 186 students in first through 12th grades. Intended as a tribute to Martin Luther King, the museum collaborated with District 186 to showcase art by African American students and work by any student depicting the Black experience. Also included in this first-time exhibit is work by several African American teachers. The SCIAAHM framed and mounted the pieces with support from the Community Foundation's Community Grants Program.
A public reception was held on Jan. 14. at the Springfield Art Association (SAA) for Art is Exceptional, an exhibit of artwork by District 186 special education students. This is the fifth annual collaboration. Lynn Gilmore, Fine Arts Coordinator for District 186, said it was wonderful to see the students' faces light up when they saw their creations mounted and displayed in a professional art gallery.
The Mid-Central Illinois Region of the Scholastic Art Awards exhibition will hang at the SAA from Jan. 31 to Feb. 24. The juried artwork was selected from 770 submissions by high school and junior high school students from a 33-county area in central Illinois. Art by students from Glenwood, Springfield, Gillespie, Williamsville, Pleasant Plains and Washington High Schools will be included in the exhibit. –Karen Ackerman Witter
